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Flint Group announces Catena+ flexographic plate processing line

Flint Group recently announced its Catena+ fully automated plate processing line, featuring equipment modules Catena-E (UV LED exposure), Catena-W (solvent plate processor) and Catena-DLS (dryer, light finisher and plate stacker combination with robotized plate transport). The modular system can join together for various levels of automation with minimum operator intervention.

A Catena-DLS module can be connected to a Catena-W for automatic plate processing. The Catena-DLS has 10 drying units, 7 stacking positions and a light finisher. Robotic movements ensure plates are fully finished with no operator intervention after loading into the washer.

“We are proud to announce the Catena-DLS, the missing piece on our way to fully automated flexo plate processing. In combination with our ThermoFlexX imager, the recently released Catena-W and the Catena-E UV LED exposure, we provide a state-of-the-art, fully automated and integrated flexo plate processing system, which allows our customers to produce flexo plates at lowest total cost for every application,“ said Uwe Stebani, general manager of Xeikon Prepress.

Catena+ brings everything together, resulting in fully automated flexo plate making. Once the operator has removed the cover sheet, the plate is automatically loaded into the imager, and is completely processed and fully finished with no further operator interventions required, eliminating any possible damage from manual plate handling.

Designed as an open system, Catena+ allows easy loading of plates from other imagers into the Catena-E LED exposure unit. Plates from other exposure frames can also be loaded.

The full line includes Catena Cockpit, which provides a status report on plate processing, progress and expected time of completion. With Catena ProServX software, the machine health status of all modules is constantly monitored, minimizing the need for physical service interventions.